The influence of individual’s social-economic status on travel behavior of the residents of Machakos town, Kenya

Abstract

In every city, residents must travel from their estates to the town for varied reasons, which may include attending to work, to seek administrative services, for shopping or to attend classes among others. It becomes paramount for a good transport network to be provided to facilitate easy and efficient movement back and forth their destinations. Machakos town, due to its proximity to Kenya’s capital city, Nairobi, is rapidly experiencing rapid expansion and population growth and its fast growing into a big city calling for urgent need to study the travelers’ behavior of its residents by critically looking at the factors that influence the travelling behaviors. The objective of the study was to identify the Influence of Individual’s Social-Economic Status on Travel Behavior of The Residents of Machakos Town, Kenya. The study aimed at establishing the factors that influence the choice of travel routes used by Machakos residents and aimed at assisting the policy makers in Machakos county government, to formulate policies regarding travel patterns within Machakos town, as well as earmarking roads that might require upgrading depending on demand to ease congestion. This meticulous planning would go a long way in informing the residents of Machakos town pertaining appropriate choice and mode choice of travel in respect to saving time. A successful study would further aid future researchers, who might be willing to study the travel behaviors in Machakos town, as it availed information on specific areas and still has left out those areas not touched by the research. A descriptive research design methods was adopted where structured questionnaires and interview schedule were the data collection procedures. A sample of 400 households was chosen from the population using Slovin’s formulae. The results revealed that the socio-economic status of residents has a positive and significant impact on the urban travel behaviors of residents (β=0.446, p=0.000). The study recommended that the available transport facilities along Machakos town should be improved since travelers often use them. The county government of Machakos should come up with better strategies to ease traffic congestions during the early mornings and late evenings. The county government of Machakos should also tighten security around Machakos town by adding more streetlights along the footpaths and sidewalks.